Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Clovis High senior post Mackenzie Roche battles with two Miyamura players, including senior Aubrey Tah (24), for possession of the ball during Wednesday's quarterfinal matchup in the Plateau Holiday tournament at The Rock. The Lady Cats beat Miyamura and Silver to reach Friday's title tilt against La Cueva.
Clovis High senior Kailyn Jefferson goes over Miyamura freshman Amora Yazzie for a first-half shot during Wednesday's contest.
Clovis High senior Zarai Lewis attained a personal milestone on Thursday.
As for the Lady Wildcats, they cruised to a pair of victories to reach the finals of the Plateau Holiday tournament at Rock Staubus Gym.
Lewis funneled in 14 points and reached the 1,000 mark with a basket early in the second period as CHS crushed Silver 63-18 in a semifinal tilt. The four-year varsity veteran ended the night with 1,007 points.
"That's good for a kid," CHS girls coach Jeff Reed said of the milestone, then quipped: "I hope tomorrow she (gets to) 1,050. It's a nice accomplishment for her. I was glad to get the win and be able to get to the championship game of our tournament."
Clovis (8-1) was slated to take on La Cueva (4-2) in Friday night's finals in the eight-team tournament, seeking its third consecutive title in the event.
Through 2 ½ quarters, the Lady Cats scored all of their points in lengthy runs – 17-0 after Silver (5-3) tallied the game's first basket, then 13-0, 14-0 and 8-0 to lead 52-13 with under four minutes left in the third.
Silver managed only five field goals and had 29 turnovers, including 23 in the first half before the teams played with a running clock for most of the final two frames.
Senior post Kailyn Jefferson added 13 points while junior guard Amanda De La Rosa notched her second consecutive double-digit outing with 12. De La Rosa scored 10 points in the third period, including a pair of 3-pointers.
Sophomore guard Taylianna Castillo had five points for the Lady Colts.
La Cueva, ranked 11th in Class 5A by MaxPreps, figured to give the third-ranked Lady Cats a tough time.
"If we want to be one of the top teams, those are the games you have go out and win," Reed said.
Clovis 66, Miyamura 32 (Wednesday, quarterfinals) – Talk about a quick turnaround.
For about 5 ½ minutes, it looked like the Lady Cats might have their hands full with the Gallup-based Lady Patriots.
Miyamura scored the game's first five points and led 12-9 after a basket by senior Reika Secatero with 2:41 left in the opening stanza. Suffice it to say, it was a long time before the Lady Patriots scored again.
CHS collected the final nine points of the quarter, outscored Miyamura 19-0 in the second and extended the run to 12 minutes and 30-0 with a basket from Lewis to open the third frame for a 39-12 lead.
"We didn't come out ready to play," Reed said. "Miyamura came out and knocked us in the mouth."
Jefferson accounted for 12 points during the run, and Lewis added nine. Lewis finished with 24 points, while Jefferson had 14 and De La Rosa added three 3-pointers and 11 points.
"I think we could've played better," Lewis said. "I think we're going to be a great team this year if we can work together better."
Lewis also had a trio of 3s for the Lady Cats, who went from a man-to-man defense to a 3-2 zone late in the first quarter.
"Sometimes we play better in a zone," Lewis said. "I think sometimes it just works better with the personnel we have."
Clovis committed just nine fouls in the game – including only one in the first half – while trying to get the tempo faster. The Lady Cats finished with 18 turnovers, but forced Miyamura into 26 mechanical errors.
Junior Kaytoinette Ross paced the Lady Patriots with nine points, all coming in the third stanza.
